When You Can't Sleep at Night

Hey guys!

This post is on a very different topic to one that I usually do. I recently have been hit by a stupid amount of insomnia... some of it my fault (staying up until stupid o'clock in the morning on my last week of uni didn't help it) and some of it REALLY REALLY not. A lot of my friends have also said recently that they are struggling with sleep so I wanted to do a post to help my fellow insomniacs out a little bit and give you guys some things that really helped me to reduce my insomnia.

1) Background Noise

Image from flowvella.com


I used to sleep in silence but the insomnia started to happen more regularly and I was getting a lot of nasty flashbacks to being attacked so I started to think about how I could distract my brain from these thoughts. My solution? I started putting background noise on. This can literally be anything from putting something on Iplayer on quiet volume or going onto Youtube to find a 10 hour long rain noises video (yes they do exist). Having this background noise seemed to really help me start to fall asleep. Don't have it on too loud though. Sounds stupid but if it's at the wrong volume by even one setting it can become more irritating than helpful.

2) Convince Yourself You Want to Stay Up


OKAY I KNOW THIS SOUNDS REALLY STUPID AS YOU WANT TO GO TO SLEEP!!!!!! 

BUT

If your brain is anything like mine (a little, annoying rebel), as soon as you start to tell it you want to stay up, it will start to crash, rebel and try to send you to sleep. Put something on TV/ your laptop at a quiet volume (not something too gripping as then you really won't sleep) and slowly drift off. Not the most reliable one of the lot but it sometimes works for me!

3) Pillow Mist (Aromatherapy Mist)




Quite a new one for me but it is actually so good! I was given some pillow mist by my mother for Christmas (thank you ma) and I was intrigued to find out how good it is. All you do is spray it a few times around your pillow (I sometimes add some to the top of my quilt as well) and it gives you light scents that help to switch your brain off. I usually use this when I can feel that I'm really close to sleep and just need that extra push. The one I have is from Avon; it's the Planet Spa Sleep Serenity Pillow Mist which has light chamomile and lavender scents in it and it's only £4.50. This is the only one I've used and it is gorgeous so I really would recommend it. I might start trying some others out and I'll let you guys know what I think of them!

4) Sleep Serenity Balm




Another new one! As well as the pillow mist, my mother also got me the Avon Planet Spa Sleep Serenity Balm which is also in chamomile and lavender. Unlike pillow mist, this is something I have come across before and I know you can get them from companies such as Anatomicals, Badger etc. This particular one isn't too overpowering which is brilliant and I just apply a small amount to my temples and wrists. Along with the pillow mist, this goes down a treat and I recommend you give it a try! The Avon one is only £4.99!

5) Night Time Tea




A couple of years ago I didn't drink a lot of tea but as I've got older and after I moved to London, I started to drink more of it ( I have no idea why). I was speaking to my singing teacher about my lack of sleep and he told me about a couple of things that can help and one of those was valerian root. When talking to my Ma about it (she has been drinking night time tea for a long time) she mentioned that there is Valerian Root in some night time teas so I thought I would give these teas a shot. I was sent a selection of them from my Ma and my favourite one is the Pukka Night Time Tea (costs £3.29 per box of 20 teabags) which is a blend of organic oat flower, lavender, lime-flower and valerian. It tastes okay which is good (some of them taste so strange and weird which puts me off) and I also enjoy (this is going to sound weird) breathing in the steam from the cup as it helps to clear my sinuses and soothe my throat if it has been under a lot of strain in either singing or acting class. If you are a tea- drinking insomniac, try this out! 

6) ASMR - Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response

Image from www.sleeprate.com


This one is my favourite and by FAR the thing that helps me the most. I came across ASMR a couple of years ago when a friend from college said, 'Hey, look at these videos my friend makes. She's really popular on Youtube.' I had a look and I thought her videos were so relaxing and soothing. I let it go for a while but when I started to struggle to sleep, I remembered how relaxing ASMR was and thought I'd start watching ASMR videos again. 

What is ASMR I hear you ask? Well, ASMR stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response and it refers to the tingling sensations you get in either your scalp, back, muscles, neck etc. which are triggered after certain sounds, visuals or action stimuli are presented. It can help to put the brain in a state of relaxed euphoria and is said to help with insomnia, anxiety and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (all things I have/ are experiencing) as well as many other disorders. It is completely different for everyone and everyone will be triggered by different things. The most common triggers are soft spoken words/ whispering (I personally love this and prefer videos all done in whispering), tapping, scratching, crinkling materials, hair brushing and role-plays. I know that this must seem so crazy to some of you but trust me, it is a world worth exploring and I've become so much calmer since watching the videos. I've also spoken to my counsellor about ASMR and the effects of it are visibly positive. 

There are some really brilliant ASMRtists on Youtube and here I will tell you my personal favourites! My very favourite artist (Small Wonders) unfortunately removed her official channel after inappropriate comments were left on her videos which I think is a real shame. Her videos are still on Youtube under the channel 'Small Wonders Reuploads' and I watch these regularly, in particular the Make-Up Role-play, Nose Examination Role-play and Get Ready for Sleep videos. My other favourite artists are 'asmrbebexo', 'EarthlyASMR', 'Comic Tingles ASMR', 'Ava Elizabeth ASMR', 'TingleBelleASMR' and 'Ellie Alien ASMR.' Ellie Alien is a particularly interesting one for me as she doesn't do her videos in English. This sometimes helps me because I don't want to concentrate on what people are saying sometimes so by having light whispers in a different language that I don't understand helps me to relax.

OTHER RANDOM TIPS

Sometimes having a warm bath before sleeping helps. I can't do this anymore because my flat in London doesn't have a bath but every time I return to my hometown to see my parents and boyfriend, I ALWAYS have a bath because it is so relaxing.

Clean linen/ bedsheets/ PJs can also help. Obviously, this can't happen every night because washing is expensive (especially where I live) and you shouldn't have to wash your bed sheets every day! 

Don't listen to any music that is too upbeat. If I get distracted and start listening to my normal music I won't be able to sleep at night because I become too awake!

I hope these tips work! Let me know how you get on on either:

Twitter: http://twitter.com/Mooseinthehuuse

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Mooseinthehuuse

or in the comments section below!


OUTFIT OF THE DAY

I didn't really plan an outfit for this one so it's only one picture and you can't even see the whole thing but because we are on a sleepy post, I thought I'd wear my sleepy batman onesie!


Onesie: Burton - A christmas gift from a while back and it is no longer stocked.

SONG OF THE DAY

OF MICE AND MEN - WHEN YOU CAN'T SLEEP AT NIGHT




SEE YA NEXT TIME GUYS!



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